How low can you go...? (Etch resolution)

[.Mike]

I had some extra space when I was etching a board, and decided to see how low I could go. Here is a PDF of what I etched: Link.

Maybe we could use this topic to compare our methods and results. Here are mine:



It looks like I can reliably etch down to 0.008". It gets spotty at 0.007".

That was using dollar store photo paper, a Samsung ML-2525 printer, ABCFAB board, and 1:1 mix of 31.45% HCl and 3% H2O2.

Anyone else want to give it a shot...?

Mike

[davent]

Amazing work with the toner transfer!

I haven't got scientific evidence but the line representing mouth of the old hag , according to the drawing software (Inkscape) is ~ 0.004 wide and there are some lines finer then that in the image. Photo-sensitized boards, nothing optimised, just a run-of-the-mill process.





dave

[CodeMonk]

I go down to 0.9mm (In DIYLC, haven't bothered to actually measure trace width).
yeah I know, crazy american using metric for all my stomp box measurements, I just find it easier.

Using an HP Laser Jet 4P (it was free. Sort of, Someone loaned it to me, then moved out of the state without telling me shorty after) and some photo paper from Staples.
I'l see if I can get around to do a physical measurement and some other details later today.

[artifus]

yeah I know, crazy american using metric for all my stomp box measurements, I just find it easier

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/senior_year

[bonaventura]

metric is cool 

i can make under 1mm line by the magazine papers + FeCl method,but not consistently.

[Pollinator95]

Wait, so .Mike was using inches? Knowing that improves my etching self-esteem a bit. 

[defaced]

The quotation symbol is short hand for inches in the US. So yes, .Mike's post is in inches.

I have trouble etching 0.010", but get pretty good success at 0.016" using toner transfer.  From what I've seen, I get better results with a very dense copper pattern as opposed to wide open areas of etched board.  This is both true for the etching and the transfer part of the process. Rumor has it Brother printers don't do to well for this, so that I can even get 0.016" after all the trouble I've had trying to get an etching procedure dialed over the past five years when I bought the printer is pretty good. 

[deadastronaut]

yep ive done the smallest text i can get on a pcb experiments using toner transfer method, works really well....

as long as i tape the image down so it wont smudge its fine...really fine!..